Merhaba/Hello from Antalya, Turkey!
So wonderful and exciting to have the gift of you joining in my latest week of adventure. This week's post has been a touch delayed as I spent more time enjoying being a tourist. Obviously, my intent was looking for more amazing experiences and photos to share with you!
How was last week in your life? Wbat did you learn? What new people did you meet? Who did you introduce yourself to? Any random act(s) of kindness? I ask these questions as a prompt to challenge you to stretch beyond your comfort zone. I also want to remind you that the more good you put out into the universe the more good you will receive in return.
At the risk of repeating myself, I strongly recommend considering Central Asia as a possible future vacation destination. Great place to visit if you like history (Alexander the Great, the Silk Road and so much more), stunning nature (mountains, forests, lakes), delicious food and warm hospitality. English is a common language in the urban areas and Google Translate is a good companion in the more remote areas.Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have the better public transportation networks if you're traveling like me. The countries also have good road networks if you want to drive. Kyrgyzstan is a little more challenging to get around so you should consider being more prepared. It's also much more 'Soviet' than the other two countries - more Russian being spoken and a distance to go on the guest services experience dimension. You'll be safe and have a good time, it just maybe a little more variable than you are used to.
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| Floating over Caapadocia, Turkey |
I'm happy to report I've now returned a country where peanut butter is available. In fact, I could purchase freshly made peanut butter if I wanted to. Another great delight I had so far in Turkey was easy access to fresh nuts of all types. What an incredible blessing! I've landed in nut heaven!
You may have noticed how frequently I am now booking tours as an alternative approach to exploring my destination. I'm slowly adapting my travel expectations to take advantage of the conveniences a tour has to offer. I'm free to wander off on my own with the simple requirement to reappear, on time, at the designated departure point. I've avoided the added complexity of renting a car and driving myself in what amounts to being a very limited time frame.
My sincere thanks to John, my Masonic brother in Eau Claire for sharing his Turkish travel insights. John, who is originally from Turkey, highlighted Cappadocia, the Turkish Riviera and Istanbul as potential destinations. He has transformed my Turkish adventure into a most memorable time I've had in my first five nights in Turkey.
May the universe bring endless blessings and moments of magic 🦄 to you and your loved ones in the week ahead. 🙏
Travel Administration
Heads up if you're traveling to Kazakhstan. You are required to complete a
digital entry form in a government app you can download for your smartphone. This is the first country I've traveled to that has required evidence you have travel health insurance. The second point you should be familiar with is that you must complete the entry form at least three days prior to arriving in Kazakhstan. This requirement is different than most countries I've visited which is completing the entry form within 72 hours of your arrival.
Travel Update
All quiet on my plans for travel these days. My flights. car rentals and accommodations are booked with the exception of my time in Seychelles.
Travel Maps
Another simpler week of travel. Connecting flight from Almaty to Nevsehir followed by a second connecting flight (through Istanbul) on Saturday as I make my way to Antalya.
Kazakhstan: August 3 to August 18, 2026
Intercountry Travel: Almaty, Kazakhstan to Navsehir, Turkey - August 18
Turkey: August 18 to August 28, 2026
Almaty
Almaty is a city with numerous beautiful sections, wide streets and boulevards and pedestrian walkways that appear to be under constant renewal. I found the city easy to navigate with great sidewalks, except for the sections where the walkways were under construction. My hotel was in a newer part of the city bordering on the older sections where you could find great trees and greenery.
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| Sidewalks in redevelopment |
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| Open spaces and monuments at intersections. |
Kok-Tobe Hill
This tourist destination, complete with a cable car, was an easy thirty minute stroll from my hotel. I succumbed to the temptation to take a ferris wheel ride for a better view of. the city and its surroundings. Have to admit that the cable car, ferris wheel ride and better much everything else was pricey. A convenient area to have a break from the busy urban life just below the hill. I hope you enjoy the view!
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| Cable car ride |
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| Ferris wheel |
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| Mountains bordering the city's east side |
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| Looking west over Almaty |
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| Looking south |
Friends
A quick follow-up from last week's post with a photo of my friends from the overnight tour who hailed from Australia, Taiwan (Australian relocated), Poland and Germany!
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Our tour guide connecting us
with the universal vibrations |
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| Campfire with guitar playing and singing |
Almaty to Nevşehir
What a series of unexpected adventures to reach Nevşehir! My journey involved getting to the Almaty International Airport for a 5 am departure with a connecting flight through Istanbul. What could possibly go wrong? So many things can happen.
Let's start with getting to the airport. I decided to take the night bus that had a stop within a ten minute walk from my hotel. I could readily get to the airport in plenty of time - if the bus stayed on the posted schedule. Thank goodness I spoke to the reception team about my travel plans. They suggested downloading the local bus app so I could track bus movements in real time. I discovered, from the app, that the two buses on the route were suddenly so far off their schedule that I would be unable to get to the airport on time. Taking a taxi was the only option. Thankfully, the night staff were able to help out. The only obstacle I had was payment was cash only. Fortuitously, I had just enough money for an economy taxi ride to the airport. There was a somewhat protracted period before an economy car was confirmed - just enough of a wait to stir some adrenaline.
Next challenge was my flight to Istanbul was delayed 75 minutes in Almaty. The delay was putting the likelihood of catching my connecting flight in peril. In fact, the crew on my flight advised me to be prepared to take a later flight. I disembarked with the idea that I had missed my connecting flight. I stopped at Turkish Airlines transfer desk to make alternate flight arrangements. The agent suggested I had sufficient time to catch my flight. I reached the gate (after a rather long walk to security and to the gate) just as the transfer bus was starting to pull away. The gate agent had to run out to delay the bus driver a couple times so I board the bus to board my original flight.
Finally, my luggage failed to make the connection in Istanbul. The ground agent at the Nevsehir airport was a gift from the universe. He called me out of the crowd waiting for the luggage to be unloaded. He confirmed my bag was still in Istanbul to be dispatched on a later flight. He reassured me that my luggage would be delivered to my hotel later in the day. Sure enough, my luggage was delivered, intact, to my hotel about four hours after I checked in.
Thank you to the universe for safely guiding me through my travels. 🙏
Almaty to Istanbul
Thank goodness the six hour flight to Istanbul was uneventful. Last time I visited Istanbul was in the early 1980's so much has changed!
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Bridge over Bosphorus Strait
connecting Europe with Asia |
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| Bosphorous Strait |
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| Turkish coastline |
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| Istanbul |
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| Istanbul |
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| Istanbul |
Istanbul to Nevşehir
The big thrill for this flight, other than the magnificent landscape views and safe landing, was watching a plane that was flying parallel to our plane, land on a parallel runway. First time that I've witnessed such an event.
I discovered, somewhat belatedly (and in spite of my research), that I may have booked my hotel in the 'wrong' location. Most first time visitors book accommodation in Göreme or Uçhisar which are physically closer to the open air museum, fairy chimneys and provides a front row seat for the morning hot air balloon lift off and flight. The other key draw is many hotels have 'cave' rooms so you can enjoy the experience of staying in a cave giving you a first-hand experience (with modern conveniences) of the ancient residents. The cave room experience was unappealing to me. I also discovered through my various tours about how congested and touristy these small communities were. You might want to consider staying in one of these two towns if you want the 'authentic' experience while visiting Cappadocia along with the thousands of other tourists looking for the same experience as you!
In retrospect, I accidentally found the right place, the Crowne Plaza, to stay for my four nights. I was spoiled for my stay. I was upgraded to a spacious one bedroom suite complete with a welcome basket of fruit and three kinds of fresh nuts. Both breakfast and dinner were included in my room rate. The hotel staff were beyond amazing! What a memorable stay! Most tours included pick up in Nevsehir as part of their tour package so I enjoyed that convenience as well. The added bonus to my location was the three minute walk to a shop that sold all kinds of freshly roasted nuts and seeds. I was in heaven!
I'm thankful to Alma and her husband from my Kazakhstan overnight tour who alerted me to the Red and Green Tours available in Cappadocia. What a gift! I was set for exploring the area without renting a car. I had three days available so I booked a Red Tour, a Green Tour and a hot air balloon ride on three separate days. Ideal for the time I had and my superficial knowledge of the area. I was about to get an efficient injection of cultural and natural beauty that was both convenient and at a reasonable price!
I'm so grateful for how the universe continues to shine its benevolence in my life. 🙏
Red Tour
Welcome to the Red Tour which gets its name from the red colored landscape that dominates the destinations that you visit during this tour.
'The Göreme Open Air Museum is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Turkey's most visited attractions. It is a complex of rock-cut churches, monasteries, and dwellings carved into the volcanic tuff of the Göreme valley between the 6th and 13th centuries by early Christian communities.
The churches contain some of the finest surviving Byzantine frescoes in the world, depicting scenes from the life of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the saints. The sheer number of intact paintings — despite centuries of exposure, vandalism, and the passage of time — makes this an extraordinary site.'
Our first destination was my introduction to the churches that were carved into tuff, the soft volcanic rock that is found throughout this area. Stunning landscape combined with amazing human ingenuity.
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Frescos found in a key church - you are unable
to take photos inside the church |
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| More info about the churches |
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| Fresco from the distance |
'Cappadocia’s fairy chimneys are stone pillars formed over 60 million years by volcanic eruptions and erosion. Three volcanoes—Erciyes, Hasan, and Güllüdağ—deposited layers of soft tuff rock capped with harder basalt. Wind, water, and frost carved away the soft stone, leaving cone-shaped, mushroom-shaped, and columnar pillars that today reach up to 40 meters tall.'
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'The Cappadocia region is home to approximately 150-200 underground settlements of varying sizes, which represent a significant cultural heritage. The majority of these settlements were constructed by carving down soft tuff, which was then used to create deep caves. The construction of underground cities was motivated by the desire to provide a secure environment for the inhabitants. The extensive network of interconnected rooms and galleries within these cities, often referred to as labyrinths, served to limit the movement of potential enemies. Özkonak Underground City provides an illustrative example of this architectural approach. The underground city, situated 14 km from Avanos, is carved on the northern slopes of Mount Idiş, where the volcanic granite structure tuff layers are particularly dense.'
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| Underground City Model |
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| More info |
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| Exploring underground rooms |
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| 3,000 year old urn |
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Round stone used to block
passageway in case of intruders |
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| Ventilation shaft |
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| New residents |
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| Reminder of where I was visiting |
'Pigeon Valley is a long, gently sloping canyon running between the main tourist towns of Goreme and Uchisar. It is named after the many pigeon houses which are carved into the soft rock of the adjacent hills.'
Pigeons were key in the local residents survival. The pigeon droppings were used as fertilizer and mixed into the mortar that formed the base for church frescos. The droppings acted as a binder for the mortar.
Hot Air Balloon Ride
Hard to believe that I was hesitating about taking a sunrise hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia! My initial reaction when I saw/read about the balloon ride was that I should avoid it because it was so touristy and commercial! I mentioned my reservations to a few people on my Kazakhstan canyon tour who had recently visited the Cappadocia area. They were passionate about their experience, encouraging me to go for a ride during my visit. The other concern niggling at me in the back of my mind was the relative safety of flying in a hot air balloon. Boy, oh boy, I have the great capacity to blow simple things out of proportion.
I booked my flight on the day I arrived leaving one day flex in my schedule should the weather be unfavorable for balloon flight on my chosen flight day. A fellow passenger on my flight from Almaty to Istanbul had mentioned that he had been unsuccessful in going up in the balloon during three different visits due to the weather. My fingers and toes were crossed!
The experience is well worth the extra expense. I treated this adventure as a 'once in my lifetime' experience to see the sunrise from a hot air balloon over a stunning landscape! I'm so happy with my decision! Sincere thanks to those amazing fellow travelers who encouraged me to take the ride!
Lift Off
Ready yourself for a 5 am hotel pick-up if you are traveling in the area during August. You hop in the basket as the pilot is inflating the balloon. We were also instructed (and practiced) the landing position - squatting down and holding onto straps in the basket.
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| Ready for lift off |
Aloft
I believe we had the most amazing hot air balloon pilot. While several balloons were several hundred meters aloft, he managed to keep our balloon relatively close to the ground so we could enjoy the landscape we were floating over. He did take our balloon to a higher elevation as the sun started to appear on the horizon.
The view is breathtaking! The ride was so smooth I 'forgot' how high we were above the ground. All my irrational fears dissipated as I was enraptured by my surroundings!
Sunrise
And then there was sunrise. OMG! I'm truly in heaven - literally and physically!
All Good Things Come to An End
After about 45 minutes being aloft we had a smooth and uneventful landing on a large patch of level ground! The company had a glass of non-alcoholic wine ready to celebrate our flight!
I also had the delight of meeting a Turkish couple who were fluently English. She had just retired after 35 years as a English school teacher. He had retired about 15 years earlier from an unknown profession. They had been married for the last 15 years. She mentioned I should visit Adana where she grew up. Wonderful community with the best food. Will need to wait for my next visit. She also referred to Kekova as a seaside location I should investigate during my travels. I enjoyed a wonderful conversation with them throughout my ride and during the van ride back to my hotel. Sadly, I failed to ask them their names! Shame on me!
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| Enjoy my 'artistry" |
Green Tour
The day long Green Tour is all about visiting sites that generally have more green space as compared to the Red Tour. While there are a few overlapping destinations between the two tours, the visitor is the beneficiary by getting more exposure to this natural beauty!
'In a spectacular landscape, entirely sculpted by erosion, the Göreme valley and its surroundings contain rock-hewn sanctuaries that provide unique evidence of Byzantine art in the post-Iconoclastic period. Dwellings, troglodyte villages and underground towns – the remains of a traditional human habitat dating back to the 4th century – can also be seen there.'
'Is the wonderful rock-cut monastery in Selime, at the end of Ihlara valley, 28 km from Aksarai. Selime was home to Hittite, Assyrian, Persian, Roman, Byzantine, Danişment, Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations. One of the most important aspects of Selime fortress-monastery was that many leading clergymen were educated there. The military headquarters of the region was also located there. While the monastery is dated to 8th and 9th centuries, the frescoes in the structure date back to late 10th and early 11th centuries. The depictions include Ascension, Annunciation and Mother Mary.'
It's truly extraordinary what these people accomplished in carving out homes, churches, monasteries and more from the area's rock formations. I just kept thinking of these people as 'Crazy Christians'. Try to imagine the community conversation (or circumstances related to personal safety) that would lead the people to start the work to build these structures within the rock.
Everything you see in the photos below was carved out of the rock, albeit rock (
tuff) is soft, over the centuries.
'Ihlara Valley is a deep volcanic canyon in the southwest of Cappadocia, formed by the eruption of Mount Hasan and carved over millennia by the Melendiz River. With walls reaching up to 150 metres in height, the valley stretches 14 kilometres from Ihlara village to Selime — making it one of the deepest and longest canyons in Turkey.
What sets Ihlara apart from other Turkish canyons is its extraordinary concentration of rock-cut churches. Over 100 churches and monasteries were carved into the cliff walls between the 4th and 13th centuries by Byzantine monks who sought refuge in this remote, defendable gorge. Around a dozen of these churches are open to visitors and contain remarkably well-preserved frescoes.'
This green oasis was a welcome change from the dry and bare rock formations throughout the area. We had the opportunity to visit one church during our one hour hike along the river. Comfortable light breeze blowing which made the 35C+ temperature much more bearable! This hike was my tour highlight.
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| Overlooking canyon/river |
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| Welcome sign |
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| Church we visited |
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| More info |
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| Frescos |
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| Frescos |
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| Church entrance |
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| Church in cliffside |
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| River walk map |
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| Canyon cliffs |
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| Greenery and cliffs - surrounded by natural beauty |
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| Nature in balance |
'Narlıgöl is a volcanic crater lake situated about 45 kilometers from the city of Aksaray. Positioned at an elevation of 1,363 meters above sea level, the lake spans an area of approximately 0.7 square kilometers and reaches a depth of around 21 meters. Its waters are brackish, influenced by the thermal springs found in the nearby hills.'
Here's a stop where I missed the significance until I did the after visit research to accompany the photos below. Sometimes I really do need to be paying closer attention!
Pigeon Valley Revisited
Our tour made its way to the famous Pigeon Valley so I got a double dose of seeing the pigeons and their homes that were carved in the cliffside for them. How bird poop shaped a culture!
'Uçhisar Castle is the tallest fairy chimney formation in Cappadocia, rising 60 metres above the surrounding landscape. It is not a castle in the conventional European sense — it is a massive volcanic rock pinnacle that has been hollowed out over millennia by humans who carved rooms, tunnels, and storage chambers directly into the soft tuff.'
Sunrises
My hotel windows faced the east so I had the convenient beauty of watching the sun rise from my hotel room. The added plus was witnessing the multitude of balloons rising from Avanos which was about ten km away.
August 19
August 21
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I struggled with getting a 'clean' shot from the same
windows I used on the previous day! |
August 22
Friends
Crowne Plaza - Nevşehir
I feel compelled to share my Nevşehir hotel experience! Everything about my stay was exceptional. I've mentioned I'm an IHG Platinum Elite member which typically translates into a room upgrade (no guarantees, though). Well, I was upgraded to a beautiful, large one bedroom suite along with daily breakfast and dinner. I received a fruit basket and three varieties of fresh nuts to munch on. I think I was spoiled by the staff. The assistant manager Feyzullah was my constant companion as he checked in on my stay, what I was doing and offered the hotel services if I needed them. Ismail, who was my waiter for dinner on most evenings, was the most thoughtful and kind man. He was also patient with my attempts to say a few words in Turkish!
A most memorable moment of all was when Meryem offered me a cup of Turkish tea just after I finished checking in. What made this memorable was the kind offer immediately connected me with my previous visit in the early 80's when a cup of tea was offered by shop owners when you entered their shops in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. I'm sharing the list of people who contributed to my most excellent guest experience!
Reception
Filiz Akyol - Manager
Feyzullah - Assistant Manager
Meryem Noz Ürün - Front Desk
Tuğba - Front Desk
Food & Beverage
Fatih - Manager
Ismail - Waiter
Edoardo and Lucrezia - Milan, Italy
I met this wonderful couple from Italy on my Green Tour through the universe's intervention. I originally sat in a seat at the front of our tour van. After our first stop, a couple women decided they wanted my seat more than I did so I had to move to a single seat mid van. And it's because I was forced to relocate I had the chance to chat with this couple. I look forward to visiting with them in Milan in the future. My thanks to them for their warm hospitality.
Guillermo and Partner - Spain
I met this wonderful couple who live south of Barcelona, Spain. Guillermo works as a manager for Deloitte and his amazing partner (whose name I ashamedly have forgotten) works for the public service in the taxation group in their city. Our connection with Guillermo was through my KPMG experience as we compared what it was like to work for these types of firms. I can confidently share these firms have a consistent approach to overworking and underpaying their associates. I had a chance to share my newest favorite inspiration saying - 'Change your mind, change your life' which I adopted during my Mongolian adventures. My encouragement was directed at exploring employment opportunities, like self-employment for a more satisfying and potentially reasonable life between work and personal time. We exchanged our contact info should I be a ptoential resource in the days ahead!
Nevşehir to Antalya (via Istanbul)
My connecting flight to Antalya, through Istanbul, was uneventful this time. I had a four hour layover which I decided to spend in a business lounge courtesy of a free pass I used associated with my Canadian credit card. I'm down to my last free pass (I get six passes/year) which I'm planning to use during my seven hour layover in Istanbul when I fly to the Seychelles in November.
Istanbul to Antalya
As you may have noticed in my recent blog posts, I've developed a preoccupation with taking photos of the country's landscape during the flight and on approach to the airport i'm flying into. I thought the photos may provide you, my faithful adventurer, with a better idea of the topography in the different parts of the world - clear skies and clean airplane window permitting, of course! BTW - the flight from Istanbul was about an hour long.
Welcome to the Turkish Riviera (aka Turquoise Coast)! Antalya, the capital of tourism, is one of Turkey's largest cities with about 1.5 million residents. I chose to stay in the Konyaaltı Beach area where the sandy beaches are found. Heads up on beaches in this area - they range from large pebbles to granular sand. Ensure you invest a few minutes to confirm the type of beach you will be near to avoid being surprised or disappointed. I've read hotel reviews where guests mentioned traveling long distances to find the beach of preference.
Many thanks to Yandex Maps for guiding me on the combination of tram and bus I needed to take from the airport for the hour long trip ($2.88 Cdn fare) to my hotel. My hotel was a five minute stroll from the bus stop. Yes, you're right, I do take some pride in figuring out how to use public transportation to reach my accommodation! It's like working on a jigsaw puzzle in fitting the different buses and transfer points together to reach my destination.
My hotel was a five minute walk from the sandy beach. More about the beach and city in next week's post. I arrived at my hotel around 6:30 pm so only had a brief walk along the beach after the sun had disappeared.
Very warm and humid weather greeted me on arrival. The light breeze off the Mediterranean Sea brought some relief!
I'm back in beach paradise. My happy place!
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| Airport graphic - looks amazing, right?! |
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| Sun setting as I made my way to my hotel |
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| Saturday evening sunset |
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| Looking north from Konyaaltı Beach |
Next Week
I'm spending three nights in Antalya, fly to Istanbul for three nights in Istanbul and then fly to Albania on Saturday morning for the following eight nights.
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